An Everlasting Love
by Graciegirl127
Summary: Kim has a secret. Little does she know that Jack has a huge secret as well. After winning a relaxing trip to Hawaii for being the top Bobby Wasabi Dojo, the trip becomes anything but relaxing. As Jack and Kim become closer than ever, Kim is forced to push him further away. But despite the forces against them, can their inevitable love prevail? (Summary of: The Scapegoat Heart)
1. A New Love Sparks: Part 1

**Chapter 1, A new Love Sparks**

**A/N: Hey everyone! This is my first story so please be nice, although I do appreciate constructive criticism! Please please please review and (hopefully) favorite! Enjoy!**

Dear Diary,

Summer, summer, summer. It's that fabulous season during which we get two-months of school-free freedom. Summer is when we get to relax on the beach, inhaling the scent of a sparkling blue jewel known as the ocean. With sand tickling your toes. But, honestly it looks like we need a reality check. My summer is far from my clichéd dream of relaxing on an Oceanside paradise. Unfortunately, I am stuck in a plane, traveling halfway across the country to the middle of nowhere in Kansas for Rudy's Aunt Bertha's wedding. Let's just say I'll be lucky if I get picked up by a tornado and land in Munchkin Land while we're there. Yeah, this trip is not my ideal summer vacay.

Xoxo- Kim

I tucked my black and white composition notebook into my tote bag. I got to sit with Jack, which I guess made the trip a little better. Not that I like him or anything. Ew, no. It's just that anything's better than sitting with Eddie and Jerry as they have a very opinionated debate about falafel.

I repositioned myself to face the front. I had been sitting with my back against the window so that Jack couldn't see what I was writing in my diary. I don't want him to think that I was one of those girls who only care about boys, gossip and clothes. Sure, some of my cheerleader friends are like that, but I'm not the kind of girl who wants to be labeled as typical.

"Really Kimmy? A diary?" Jack was eyeing the corner of my diary which was stickng out of my bag.

"Um…uh…no. I was just um writing that paper thing. Yea, I was um doing that social studies homework." Yup, that's me, Dr. Smooth.

"Really? Cool! What's it about?" Immediately my face flushed. I was never good at lying.

"Ya know. Um Finand?" My supposed answer ended up turning into what sounded like a question.

"Kimmy?" Jack said.

"Hmm?"

"Were studying china."

"Right." I said, as I yawned. I was exhausted. This morning, I had to wake up ant 4:30 a.m. so that we could make our 7:15 flight. I am not accustomed to waking up at such early hours. I usually prefer to sleep till noon.

I felt my eyelids getting heavy. I struggled to keep them open, but my fatigue won me over and I eventually dozed off, my head falling onto Jack's shoulder.

**Jack's POV**

_ Kim doesn't like me. Yeah, right. And pigs can fly. Suddenly I felt weight on my left shoulder and looked to find an asleep Kim on my shoulder. _

_ Yup, she sure doesn't like me. But why do I care so much? Because she's my friend. A really close friend…literally. And it wouldn't even matter if I happened to like her because she had thousands of guys come to her with their hearts in their hands, so why would she choose me. Of course, I'm figuratively speaking, right?_

I shook those absurd thoughts out of my head. Time for a little math: Kim + Jack= Friends. _Right._ I say to myself. _Kim and I are just friends._

**Kim's POV**

When I woke up, the first thing I saw outside of my small, little airplane window was corn…lots of corn. _I guess we landed. _ I thought. The only place that was free of corn was the runway for the plane.I sat up and realized that I had been sleeping on Jack's shoulder. My face turned about three shades redder.

"Did you sleep well, Princess?" asked a grinning Jack.

"Don't call me that." I said, glaring at Jack. I hated it when he called me

"Princess." L.A.R. with Milton is something that we all agreed to never speak of again. I guess Jack had some trouble comprehending that.

"Okay guys. Time to go to our hotel." Rudy said, smiling.

"Woah we get a hotel? I call a drawer for my car fresheners!" Eddie said. I raised my eyebrows.

"What? They need to remain fresh or else I'll smell like Forest Death instead of Forest Fresh!" Eddie said, holding his hands up.

"Whatever. I just can't wait to meet the Wizard of Oz! Ya know, some people say that he's a fake, but I'm gonna meet him for real and then wish for a lifetime supply of corndogs!" Jerry said, an excited look on his face. I rolled my eyes and laughed. Typical Jerry.

**Jack's POV**

When we arrived at the hotel it was almost one o'clock. Rudy got lost on the way there, and we somehow ended up in Oklahoma for a brief moment, but we're finally here.

When we got to our rooms, we found two beds in each.

"I automatically get my own because I'm the only girl!" Kim shouted, and before anyone could argue, she went to start unpacking.

"Hey! No fair! I'm getting my own, also1" I protested.

"Alright, fine. You and Kim get this room, and the rest of us will take the other." Eddie said, making his way to the other room, followed by Jerry, Milton and Rudy. When they were gone, I turned to Kim, who had managed to fill up the whole bureau.

"Looks like we're roommates." I said.

"Okay here are the ground rules," Kim started. I sighed, knowing that this wasn't going to be easy. "We individually change in the bathroom and knock before we exit."

"What sane person knocks before they exit a bathroom?" I inquired.

"Jack, you've known me lone enough to know that I'm not sane. And besides, I might have a fashion crisis and need to change!" I'd never heard Kim sound so girly in my life. She must have seen the surprise on my face, because she quickly replied by saying, "I'm a girl! Just because I do karate doesn't mean I can't be stylish." I held my hands up in surrender, looking around the room for a quick second. But my eyes landed back on Kim who was walking back and forth, folding and organizing everything.

**Kim's POV**

When I looked up from my suitcase, I caught Jack staring at me. I was about to question his stare, until I was pulled into his gaze. I found myself swimming in a pool of chocolate. I was drowning in his eyes. I was falling into an endless abyss of warmth. I suddenly realized that we were a mere foot away, when I could have sworn he started to lean in when along came Jerry.

"Yo Kim? Have you seen Jack? I gotta ask hi-" Jack and I quickly jumped apart. "I guess you found him…" Jerry said. "I'll just leave you guys alone" and with that, Jerry shuffled away.

By now, my face must have resembled a tomato. Jack was blushing too.

"How about all that corn?" jack said, trying to cover up the awkward moment.

This trip was going to be…..interesting.


	2. A New Love Sparks: Part 2

**Chapter 2, A New Love Sparks: Part 2**

**A/N: AHHHHH! You guys have no idea how much I love all of you! I got 10 reviews? Like seriously? Eeeeep! That's more than I could ever ask for! But, I do accept anonymous reviews so if you don't review it, you have no excuse (sorry, I can get slightly evil…). I forgot to say that my first chapter is a two (or possibly three) part series, but you probably guessed that anyway! **

**If you have any ideas, I'd be more than happy to accept them! Just leave a review with your idea or PM me. **

**I'll try to get a story out as quickly as possible, but don't expect a lot during the first week or two of school!**

**Yada yada yada, blah blah blah. SO that's the end of my annoyingly long author's note.**

**One last thing; I changed the rating to T just to be safe. I'm a little bit of a control freak, but whatevs!**

**Love,**

**Gracie**

Dear Diary,

What did I do? Because, honestly, I feel like Karma keeps coming back around and smacking me in the face. Sure, I'm friends with Jack, but did I ask to be his "roomie?" Umm, NO! It's just been really awkward. I don't see the problem with him sleeping on the floor of the other room. If he did that, I would get my own room! And no I'm not selfish…I'm just rational.

Xoxo- Kim

**Jack's POV**

_Smack! _I heard Kim angrily slam her notebook closed.

"You okay?" I ask, a little scared…of her. I may have a black belt in karate, but when Kim's angry, she's a force to be reckoned with.

"I'm great." She said, with sarcastic tone, as she marched over to the balcony. I followed her out, her blonde hair dancing in the cool, night breeze.

"Hey," I asked, softly, "What's wrong?"

"I don't want to be your 'roommate,'" she said holding up air quotes, "I don't want to be in the middle of nowhere in Kansas, I don't want to go to some creepy old cat lady's wedding, and I most definitely don't need you to try and save the day and cheer me up!" I was slightly taken aback by her sudden explosion. She certainly gave Mount Vesuvius a run for his money.

"Look Kim, we're only here for three days. Make the most of it! Have fun." I said, trying my best to cheer her up.

"Its Kansas, Jack. What do you want me to do? Have a corn shucking party?" she replied, sarcastically. There was a moment of silence. I looked towards her, seeing her eyes sparkle in the moonlight.

"Whatever," Kim said, breaking the silence, "I'm going to sleep."

I watched as she turned to leave. For a couple minutes, I just stood there, thinking about summer, thinking about Kansas, and thinking about Kim.

**Kim's POV**

Okay, maybe I was a little hard on Jack, but I meant what I said, and I am not the kind of person to apologize. Apologies show weakness; they make me feel like the other person has the upper hand, and I was not going to give Jack the satisfaction. I sighed as I lay there in bed.

When Jack finally came back in, I pretended I was asleep. He hopped into bed, and fell asleep.

I felt anxious. Insomnia was crawling all over me as if I was being attacked by a swarm of ants. I just couldn't sleep. I was tired, I was alone, and I was rapped inside my non-sleeping body.

I sat up and walked to the balcony. I crouched down and sat with my back against the sliding door. I stared up at the sky. Thousands of stars filled my gaze and I felt at peace. Suddenly, I felt someone else's presence. The brown-haired figure sat beside me, and we both stared at the twinkling sky. The minutes passed by as we sat in silence, breathing in the picture perfect scenery.

"When I was younger, I used to always stare at the stars with my dad." Jack started, smiling at the memory. "We would just go into the backyard and lay there. See those three stars?" he pointed towards the sky. "That's Orion's Belt. I used to love the story behind it. I thought he was so powerful and strong."

I smiled as I looked at the sky. A little monster named Guilt started to devour me. I turned to Jack.

"I'm sorry," I said, the never before spoken words bringing an unappealing taste to my mouth. "Ya know, for exploding earlier. It wasn't fair." He turned toward me, his eyes burning into mine. My heart began to beat faster, and it took all my will power to pull away from his enchanting gaze.

"It's fine." He whispered, and I smiled. I got up, and walked to my bed. Of course, I stupidly mistook Jack's bed for my bed. Because of my lack of sleep, I immediately fell asleep…..in Jack's bed.

When I awoke in the middle of the night, I found a sleeping Jack next to me, looking peaceful and serene.

**A/N: So? What'd ya think? Sappy? Cheesy? Fantablous? Awful? Too much narrative? Not enough dialogue? The only way to answer these questions IS TO REVIEW!**

**SO please take the 10 seconds to click that little rectangle below and share the love….or hate…..I depends on what you thought of this chapter.**

**Okay, so it looks like this is gonna end up being a 3 part series. I still would love some requests and ideas, so if you have one, PM me. And I'll give you credit if you give me an idea.**

**Lastly, I just wanna say that I FRICKIN LUV YOU GUYS! I know that the following has been previously stated, but I got 10 reviews! Please excuse me while I do a little happy dance.**

**Love,**

**Gracie C.**


	3. A New Love Sparks: Part 3

**A/N: Holy crap! I luv u guys so much! 27 reviews! Eeeeeep! **

**You all probably know the drill. I tell you to read and review, most of you read, a couple of you review, blah blah blah. REVIEW PLEASE!**

**Sorry about not updated sooner but I've been super busy . I also had to ditch my first draft of this cuz it felt too forced and fake. **

**This chapter is done in just Kim's POV, and a lot of the chapters will be like that. This is mostly because it's more believable when I write the story through her eyes. **

**Love,**

**Gracie 3**

**Disclaimer: Ha, in my dreams! Never have, and never will own Kickin' it :(**

"Rise and shine!" Rudy yelled. I rubbed my eyes, my vision clearing to show Rudy raising his eyebrows at me. For a moment I was puzzled, until I realized what he was silently wondering.

"No no no. It's not what it looks like! See, I couldn't sleep, and then I went to the balcony and the stars and I um…yeaa." I spilled, feeling as awkward as I possibly could.

"Whatever. Just get dressed for the wedding! We're leaving in an hour." Said Rudy.

I hopped out of bed, grabbed my dress and headed into the bathroom. Once inside, I slammed the door shut and made sure to lock the door. I took a shower and then blow-dried and curled my hair. After my hair was done, I slipped on my dress. It was a deep purple, with a band at my rib cage. Then, I added some mascara, eye shadow, lip gloss and blush. I knocked on the door before I left, following my own rules, and exited the bathroom.

"Wow." A staring Jack greeted me upon my exit.

"What? Do I look okay?" I asked, subconsciously fixing my dress.

"No you look…great." Said Jack. I felt my face blush slightly, but hopefully my make-up hid it. No such luck.

"You don't look half bad yourself." I said, giggling slightly. Jack was wearing black pants, a blue striped dress shirt and a black blazer. His tie hung around his neck, undone.

"Here." I said, moving towards him. I took the tie in my hands and knotted it for him. When I finished, I looked into his eyes, and was pulled into a game of tug-o-war. One side was me, fighting to get away from his eyes. The opposing side was Jack's eyes. And right now, the latter seemed to be winning.

"You may now kiss the bride." Said the preacher.

A roar of applause. Celebration. I fall into a daydream of what my wedding might be like someday, imagining the happiness and excitement. This was the first time I'd ever been to a wedding and I found it truly magical.

As everyone got up and followed the crowd to the reception tent, I bumped into someone; the bride.

"I'm so sorry!" I said. Leave it to me to bump into someone eon their wedding day.

"It's alright, honey. Hello Rudy!" said Bertha, pulling a frowning Rudy into a hug.

"Hello Aunt Bertha." Rudy seemed very unenthusiastic. On the plane ride here, her described her as a "terrifying, rabid hyena ready to pounce on her prey." Hopefully, this was being exaggerated.

Bertha was 78 years old, her face rough with peaks and valleys of age. Her wedding dress was a simple white frock embellished with lace and frills, showing her traditional taste. I found it strange but sweet that Bertha could still find love at such an old age. Her new husband George, of 75 years old, stood next to her, quiet yet happy. He fashioned a bright and warming smile on his aged face.

Bertha turned to Jack and me.

"Young love! Quite the opposite of George and myself. It's been a long time since my teenage years!" Said Bertha, laughing to herself. I was a little taken aback by her comment about Jack and I.

"Oh no we're not-" stammered Jack.

"Whatever you say." Said Bertha with a wink. I sighed, slightly frustrated. Little did I know that the night would only get worse.

It happened so quickly. I knew it was an accident, but did everyone else? I stared in shock at Bertha, wedding cake covering my entire body. I didn't mean to trip her and I don't think she meant to push me into the cake. She was probably just grabbing onto the nearest thing. The rage in her grey, baggy eyes told me that she was not happy about her ruined cake.

The whole reception tent was silent. Hundreds of eyes were fixed on me, Kim the Cake-Covered, Cupcake-Killing Queen. They all hated me right now. _I _hated me right now. I felt tars begin to fill my eyes as I stammered out two simple words, "I-I'm sorry." The words came out as a croaking whisper as I turned around and sprinted out of the tent.

When I got outside, I took of my heels and ran, simultaneously wiping as much cake from my face and neck as I could. I ran into the field of corn, my feet banging against the ground. Somewhere during my escape, I dropped one of my heels, but I didn't care. I kept sprinting, thinking that if I ran hard enough, I would wake up from this humiliating and cruel nightmare. No such release came. Eventually I stopped at a clearing, sinking to the ground. My body heaved in tearful sobs, as I cried warm, black, mascara-filled tears.

As I got a hold of myself, I felt the presence of another. The dark figure slowly came closer, the moonlight revealing his identity. Jack sat next to me, a silver heel in his right hand, matching the one in my left.

"You okay?" Jack inquired. As if my dramatic exit didn't answer that one.

"Yeah." I lied. He wiped a tear from my cheek.

"Everyone's already leaving. You ready to go back yet?" Jack asked softly.

"I guess." I said. As I stood up, I put my heel on my right foot. Before I could say or do anything, Jack was on his knee, putting my metallic shoe onto my left foot. I felt like a real life Cinderella. Jack stood up.

"C'mon, Princess." He said, holding his hand out. I took it, the touch sending tingles up my arm. We walked back, hand in hand to Rudy and the gang.

As we held each other's hands, I felt warm and safe. I felt like no one could tear us apart.

And I know what you're thinking, but you're wrong! I don't like Jack.

I think…

**A/N: So? Q: What'd ya think? A: you can tell my by reviewing! Remember, I take anonymous reviews so if ya don't have an account, you can still review! **

**Thanks to all the people who actually reviewed! I'm so thankful!**

**Please please please please please PM me with ideas! I'll give you credit, and if you play your cards right, possibly a cookie! Eh, jk. There are no cookies :(**

**Lots of Love,**

**Gracie 3**


	4. The Scapegoat Heart

**AN: welll hellooo there lovelies! Long time no see, eh? Well I am uploading this to let you know I am still alive! im really proud of this and this used to be its own story but I deleted that and uploaded this hereeeee to let y'all know that im still writing;)**

**And ik some of you are gonna be asking for a second part to this so I shall be writing that after I upload this**

**Also, I just wanna thank you all for the support you've given me and I can't believe I took that I took that for granted. You guys are the reason I write**

**I love you all and just fyi im probs gonna do a one-shot where kim or someone gets bullied…ya know just as a little ode to my fab hater:) **

**Xoxo, Gracie C.**

Let me cut to the chase: my life has become anything but normal. Wherever I turn I find myself caught, stuck, trapped and no matter what I do I can't get out. Every miniscule action is a formulated part of some unknown mission. The unbeknownst is eating away at me, driving me to the edge of insanity. I am surrounded by these furtive and cryptic people, watching, waiting, and hoping for a mistake to be made. And when the ultimatum became apparent, I realized the most vital piece of information yet: there was no way out.

I run, my feet slapping the ground with every forceful stride. My heart pounds, but whether it is because of running or because of _him_ I am unsure. _I just have to get away, _I thought. Hawaii was beginning to feel toxic. He was everywhere, obscuring my mind, dreams, thoughts…everything.

My heart. As long as I could keep my heart safe from him, then I would be okay. But I know it won't work.

It hurts, having to be pushed to the point of not trusting the one you love, the one you have pined after for so long. You trusted him, cared for him, would have done anything for him, yet suddenly, all that is gone. The memories, the moments: gone. I try my best reach for just one small memory, but as soon as it grazes my fingers, I lose my grasp on it, and can't seem to remember.

_They did this to me_, I say to myself. It's an insane task. Impractical, foolish, and flat out ridiculous. But I have to do it, for him.

I feel guilty, going behind everyone's back like this. But with my memory fleeing me with every passing second, do I really have a choice?

Enveloped in my thoughts, I run into someone, falling onto the ground from the force.

"Ouch," I say, rubbing my arm.

"You okay, Kim?" asks the person, offering a hand for help up. I grab it, looking up and realizing the hand belongs to none other than Jack. _Of course_, I think to myself, wondering why I'm so smooth with every guy, except Jack.

"Well, um, I gotta go. Bye!" I try my best to make a quick getaway, but to no avail.

"Woah, what's with the hurry? I feel like I haven't seen you this whole trip!" says Jack, forcing me to realize I haven't really spoken to him since the plane ride from Seaford to here in Hawaii.

"Sorry, I've um just been really busy." I say, my brain moving a million miles an hour as I

try to think up a good lie to get me out of this one.

"Busy?" he asks, a hint of doubt in his voice, "Busy with what? Kimmy, we're in Hawaii as a reward for being the best Bobby Wasabi Dojo! You shouldn't be busy! You need to learn to relax."

_Relax? How can I relax when I know I'm being watched 24/7? How can I relax when I'm being forced against my will to go behind my friends' backs? _I think to myself, accidentally letting out a bitter laugh, not being able to resist due to the cruel irony.

"It's not that simple, Jack," I say with a sigh. "If only you knew…" I think to myself.

"What? If only I knew what?" responds Jack, making me realize I had said the last part out loud.

"I'm sorry, Jack. I just…" I'm at a loss for words, seeing the hurt in his eyes. I long for the days when we were open with each other, when I could tell him everything. _I still can tell him everything. I _want _to tell him everything, but the consequences…_ Suddenly a voice rings in the back of my head:

"You can't fail us, Kimmy." The voice is cruel, evil. It reverberated throughout the dark room in which its owner stood. The bitterness in the last word, "Kimmy," causes me to wince. The voice didn't say "Kimmy" with the same care and love as Jack does. It said it with sarcasm, as if it knew it was hitting my weak spot.

"Don't call me that." I remember I retorted.

"Ha," the voice laughed, seemingly amused by my attempt at courage. "Save the bravery for later, darling. It will come in handy. Trust me." Trust seemed like an extremely twisted concept for me right now. How did he expect me to trust him when he ruined my life? At that moment I realized I didn't like, scratch that, I _hated _the voice.

"Kimmy? You there?" asks Jack, bringing me back to reality. The warmth in the way he says "Kimmy" is extremely refreshing and comforting. A wave of emotion comes over me. _Really? I'm never one of those emotional teens. Why does Jack always do this to me! _I can't control myself. My eyes get teary and I jump at Jack, wrapping my arms around him, resting my head on his shoulder.

"Whoa! What's wrong?" he puts his arms around me, comfortingly rubbing my back. I lift my head from his shoulder, looking around to make sure no one is watching me.

"I-I can't take it anymore! You don't understand Jack," I say between sobs.

"C'mon. Let's go down to the beach and you can tell me what's bothering you."

"NO!" I yell desperately, getting weird looks from passing by-standers. "No please! They'll see us and then…" My voice trails off as I come to the conclusion that I have no idea what _they _would do to me if I told anyone about my "mission."

"Okay okay! But I know where we can go." He says, a smirk creeping onto his face. I give him a confused look, my brow wrinkled. "Well it's supposed to be secret so 'they' don't see us…whoever 'they' are." He says, as he extends his hand. For a second, I hesitate. "C'mon, Kimmy. Trust me." And with that, I take his hand. _That word again: trust… _I think to myself, as we walk into what will become the most perilous night our lives.

**AN: soooo how bout we hit up that review button, eh? Luvvyeww guyzz**


	5. The Scapegoat Heart: Part 2

**IMPORTANT! I've deleted the following chapters from this fanfic: The Perfect Tree; Goodbye, Jack; and that author's note I wrote adressing my haterrrr lol**

**ANYWAY, if any of you wanna read those, feel free to PM me and i'd be happy to send them to you, or i was also thinking of just creating a dif fanfic for one-shots**

**well comment what you think, either regarding the deleted one-shots, or regarding the new chapter below;)**

**AN: ****hey lovelies! what's cookin'? so this is a continuation of the previous chapter in this fanfic so i highly recommend you read that one first in order to prevent confusion!**

**xoxo, Gracie C.**

It had started to rain. Teardrops engulfed us, each drop a bee sting against my skin. But I didn't care. I couldn't. I had more important things swirling around my mind. Like where Jack was taking me. And not to mention my ultimatum.

His hand reassuringly tightened around mine as he lead me to the unknown destination. I could tell he sensed danger. But I wasn't sure why. I guess that's the funny thing about people: no matter how well you think you know someone, you'll always be left blind to some of their secrets.

"We're almost there," he whispered. Each step was cautious and purposeful. He knew we were being watched.

"Jack, are you sure we should-" I began.

"Shhh." We came to a halt. To our left was glistening ocean, a dark navy in the moonlight. And to our right, the tallest rocks I'd ever seen, some shrouded in vines and leaves.

Jack released my hand and walked toward the rocks. His hand traced the edges of the rocks as he walked by. I could barely hear what he was muttering under his breath, but it sounded like counting. He finally stopped at a section of thickly vine-covered rock.

"Here it is," he said, half to himself and half to me.

He pushed back the vines and leaves to reveal a deep cave. It was dark and desolate looking. In any other circumstance, it would have taken a reward of a million dollars to get me inside that creepy looking cave. But this was different. I was with Jack. I knew i was safe and nothing could harm me as long as I was with him.

He motioned his hand out toward me, "C'mon," he said. I reluctantly walked forward and intertwined my hand with his. "Don't worry, Kimmy," he whispered. "Trust me."

That was all the reassurance I needed.

Yet no matter how happy, how safe, how perfect Jack made me feel, there was always this lingering sadness, like I was constantly holding a ten-pound weight on my shoulders. And every day was a struggle, because I had to wake up and be this perfectly happy Kim towards him, despite the task I'd been given. The pressure was overwhelming and there was just no escape.

"Kim?" Jack asked.

"Hmm?" I answered. I guess I was too engulfed in my thoughts.

"Are you okay?" He asked. God, how many times have we all heard that one? The usual answer is _I'm fine_, or maybe _yeah, I'm just tired_. How come we never answer truthfully? Maybe it's because no one ever asks genuinely . No one asks how you are with the expectation of a rant regarding the suckiness of life. Yet there was something sincere in Jack's voice, like he really wanted to know how I felt. But all I did was stand there blankly.

We were still standing in the rain. Jack stood next to the cave, our hands still together. He motioned his head inside and I obliged.

We found the edge of the cave and sat on the ground, our backs against the cold stone wall.

"Kim, what's up?" It wasn't one of those "what's up's" you greet a friend with in the hallway at school. It was like he knew something was really wrong, and there was a certain forcefulness implying that we weren't leaving this cave until he found out what it was. Well, then I guess we were gonna be in this cave for a while then.

I could feel the tears coming. You know how before you cry, you get that lump in your throat, that feeling like you'll suffocate if you don't cry? It's worse than the actual crying. Once you're actually crying, it feels fine. It's a sort of release. But it's the prelude to crying that sucks. You try to decide whether you want to give in and cry or stay strong.

Ya see, that's my flaw. I have this strength complex. Crying is a surrender, a sign of weakness. And I liked to be viewed as strong, especially towards Jack. And if Jack sees me as weak, well then I'm just another dependent girl. No matter how many spars I win, no matter how many black belts I acquire, it's to no avail, because I'm weak, all because of some tears.

Jack sighed.

**Jack's POV**

I wish I could just shake her awake from this nightmare she seems to be living. That's the problem: she's obviously miserable, something's obviously eating away at her, but I can't do anything. I'm watching my best friend experience a living nightmare, and no matter how hard I try to shake her awake, she refuses to wake up.

I eventually snap.

"God, Kim. What do I have to do to get through to you?"I stand up.

"What do you mean?" Her words are short and choppy, as though she's holding back tears.

"That! That's exactly what I mean! You're miserable, Kim. And I hate seeing you this way. No matter how loud I scream, how desperately I beg, you'll never just open up to me!"

She stands up, suddenly angry. A small band of moonlight peaks into the cave, allowing me to view the features of her face.

"Wanna know why, Jack?" she retorts, "Wanna know why?"

"Oh, please. Go on." I say, more sarcastically than probably necessary.

"Because I'm strong, Jack. Because I'm not some weak girl who thinks she can just crumble into a million pieces and think a hug from some guy will patch everything up. God, you think you know everything! I'm dying inside, Jack, you don't even know the half of it! If you only knew what I was going through…" her voice trailed off as she anxiously ran her hands through her hair while pacing around the cave.

My tone softens, "That's what you think? That _I'll_ think _you're_ weak?"

She turned around, arms crossed, her eyes cutting into mine.

"Kimmy," I began, walking towards her. I place a hand comfortingly on her arm and she crumbles. The very thing she thought would make her weak inadvertently made her look like the strongest person alive.

**Kim's POV**

I crumble. I jump on him, my arms around his neck. Tears flow from my eyes and onto his shoulder. And I realize the only way I can get out of this mess is with help. Which means telling Jack….everything.

We sat down again, Jack behind me, his arms surrounding me. I was enveloped in his warmth.

I turned my head so I was facing him, "Jack, I-" Before I could finish my sentence, I felt his lips against mine. And it took every muscle in my body to push him away. Tears flowing from my eyes, I stood up and hastily walked towards the cave entrance, shaking my head.

"No, no no no," I muttered to myself, I ran my hands through my hair in disbelief. I felt like I couldn't catch my breath.

"Kim, I-" Jack said as he stood up.

"Jack, I'm so sorry." I was full out sobbing now, as I ran out of the cave, hearing Jack chase after me.

"Kim, wait!" Jack yelled. I sprinted faster, my vision blurred by a mixture of tears and rain. As my feet pounded the earth faster and faster, the yells for my name became fainter and fainter until I had distanced myself so far from Jack, that the only sound audible was the rain, my footsteps, and the pounding of my heart.

And just like that, all my doubts were confirmed. I was being forced to kill the guy I was in love with.

**AN: welllll hope that wasn't too much of an emotional roller coaster. And just as an fyi to all the doubters, let's just say kick always prevails, just in case any of y'all are getting worried;)**

**and if you're still reading this, review please;)**

**xoxo, Gracie C.**


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